I'm delighted that the Government has approved plans to open two new schools for children in Maidstone.
We badly need these schools, and this announcement will give parents peace of mind that their child will have a good school place to go to. Together with KCC, I’ve been urging the Government to commit the necessary funding, and I’m pleased that they have listened.
Today it has been announced that a new Maidstone Primary Academy, will welcome 60 pupils each year when it opens in September 2018.
A new secondary special school, Bearsted Academy, will offer places for some of the region’s most vulnerable pupils when it opens in September 2018 in brand new, state-of-the-art facilities at junction 7 of the M20, near Maidstone.
Now it’s critical that everyone involved moves quickly to get the schools built and opened in time for pupils to start in September 2018.
The announcement follows my meeting with schools Minister Nick Gibb, where I made the case that Maidstone needed a new primary and a new special school by 2018, or children could miss out on a good school place.
